HMG-CN Entertainment Wire
Determined to take full advantage of Phase II of the Bette Aitken theater arts Center, the Chance expands its programming to include a
6-Show Subscription Series, a 2-Show Holiday Series, a 3-Show Theatre of Young Audiences (TYA) Series, and a 4-Show OTR Reading Series.
November 21, 2014 … Anaheim Hills, California … Chance Theater is thrilled to announce its 17th anniversary season, the second in its new home at the Bette Aitken theater arts Center. Construction on Phase II of their capital campaign will begin in a couple weeks, giving the Chance a second performance space, rehearsal space, classrooms and a scene shop. The grand opening is set for February 7, 2015.
With a second stage comes an opportunity to offer a more ambitious schedule of shows. Chance subscribers and audiences will enjoy an enticing line-up that includes a musical adventure into the Scottish highlands, a powerhouse political drama, a playfully absurd comedy about surrogacy, a joyful contemporary musical classic, a poetic modern fantasy concerning the lives of dragons, a hilarious and dark dramedy about the perils of Midwestern life, three adaptations for children (based respectively on the adventures of Alice, Fancy Nancy, and Ichabod Crane) and two classic Chance holiday traditions, one beloved and sweet, the other…a little feistier.
Chance Theater is excited to announce that our 2015 resident playwright is Lauren Yee, a playwright born and raised in San Francisco. She was a Dramatists Guild fellow, a MacDowell fellow, a MAP Fund grantee, and a member of The Public Theater’s Emerging Writers Group. She has been a finalist for the Jerome Fellowship, the PONY Fellowship, the Princess Grace Award, the Sundance Theatre Lab, and the Wasserstein Prize. Her play Samsara has been a nominee for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and the L. Arnold Weissberger Award. Her work has been published by Samuel French. As part of the resident playwright program, the Chance will produce her play Samsara as part of our 2015 Subscription Series, and present two works-in-development as part of our OTR Reading Series – King of the Yees and The Tiger Among Us.
6-SHOW SUBSCRIPTION SERIES
January 30 – February 28, 2015 on the MainStage
WORLD PREMIERE!
LOCH NESS, a new musical
Lyrics and Book by AD Penedo
Music and Book by Marshall Pailet
Directed by Marshall Pailet
Executive Producer: Mary Kay Fyda-Mar
Associate Producer: Lee Seymour
Seek and you will find
Chances are, you’ve heard of the Loch Ness Monster. But have you met the lady herself? In this whimsical new musical co-written by Marshall Pailet and newcomer A.D. Penedo, a scientist’s young daughter discovers herself — and a small, magical, and very reptilian creature — on the waters of the Scottish Highlands. Developed through our OTR reading series, Loch Ness is equal parts cheeky comedy, heart-warming family drama, and uplifting musical journey.
April 10 – May 10, 2015 on the MainStage
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PREMIERE!
AFTER THE REVOLUTION
by Amy Herzog
Directed by Oanh Nguyen
Associate Producer: Laurie Staude
Where do your loyalties lie?
Think you have the answers when it comes to truth and justice? Think again. After the Revolution, for which Amy Herzog won the New York Times Outstanding Playwright Award, throws one idealistic woman’s beliefs into chaos when her inspiration is rocked by a family revelation. This resonant, candid look at the legacy of American political history asks what is right and what is true–and are the two always mutually inclusive?
*Winner of the Outer Critics Circle Award
*Lucille Lortel Award Winner (Outstanding Playwright)
April 30 – May 31, 2015
on the Second Stage
WEST COAST PREMIERE!
SAMSARA
by 2015 resident playwright Lauren Yee
Life, love, and a talkative fetus
Katie and Craig are desperate to have a baby. When an Indian surrogate becomes their only viable option, their lives unfold in a whirlwind of imagination and irresistibly comic quirks, from a dreamy Frenchman to an embryo craving hamburgers. This frank, vibrant play by Chance’s upcoming Resident Playwright Lauren Yee looks at the lengths humanity goes to for their desires. It will leave you charmed, a little breathless, and very contemplative.
*2012 Bay Area Playwrights Festival Winner
July 10 – August 9, 2015
on the Mainstage
HAIRSPRAY
Book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan
Music by Marc Shaiman
Lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman
Directed by Kari Hayter
Choreographed by Kelly Todd
Music Direction by Robyn Manion
Executive Producers: Sophie & Larry Cripe
You can’t stop the beat
Come experience the pure joy of music and uprising in this intimate retelling of the contemporary classic. Full-figured Tracy Turnblad only wants to dance–and dance she does, through her downtrodden neighborhood, through the harsh words of her schoolmates, and through the racial barriers dividing 1960’s Baltimore. Chance presents a closer, more personal look at this vivacious celebration of rock n’ roll, revolution, and love against all odds. You’ll leap out of your seat!
*Winner of 13 Tony Awards (including Best Original Score and Book)
*Winner of 9 Drama Desk Awards
July 23 – August 23, 2015
on the Second Stage
WEST COAST PREMIERE!
THE DRAGON PLAY
by Jenny Connell Davis
Directed by Marya Mazor
Associate Producers: Scott & Sandra Graham
Will you wait for me?
At once fanciful, timeless, yet starkly contemporary, this brand new romantic tale follows one Dragon, her need for freedom, her desire for human love, and the men who get trapped in between. Emergent artist Davis brings a uniquely simple voice to a centuries old myth, clashing lore with love, and eternity with yearning.
September 25 – October 25, 2015
on the Mainstage
A BRIGHT NEW BOISE
by Samuel D. Hunter
Executive Producers: Tod & Linda White
Searching for salvation…
A man attempts to reunite with family he never knew. Little does the man suspect that this experience will test the man’s endurance, his love, and, most potently, his faith. At once darkly comic and deeply moving, this Obie Award winning play takes a sardonic yet empathetic tone as it delves into conviction, redemption, and the opening of minds in the Midwest.
*Obie Award Winner (Playwriting)
*2014 MacArthur Genius Award
2-SHOW HOLIDAY SERIES
November 27 – December 27, 2015
on the Mainstage
ANNE OF GREEN GABLES
Book by Joseph Robinette
Music & Lyrics by Evelyn D. Swensson
Directed by Casey Long
It’s not easy growing up with red hair
Generations of readers have adored the best-selling novel Anne of Green Gables, and now the musical adaptation of the beloved book hits the stage at Chance Theater. The Cuthberts expect to adopt a boy, but receive, instead, a red-haired, wide eyed orphan girl. Though clever young Anne Shirley has a penchant for getting into trouble, she works her way into the hearts of her adoptive parents as well as the residents of rural Prince Edward Island. It’s a heartwarming story for the whole family.
December 8 – 23, 2015
on the Second Stage
THE EIGHT: REINDEER MONOLOGUES
by Jeff Goode
Directed by Alex Bueno
The 12th Anniversary Production
We just couldn’t shut them up…. so for the 12th straight year, accusations, rumors and all-out attacks are (still) flying fast and furious around the toyshop. Hear the truth straight from the reindeer who know Santa best. When a doe says “No” she means “No.”
WARNING!! This show contains FOUL-MOUTHED REINDEER and very inappropriate ADULT HUMOR! Definitely no kids or anyone who doesn’t want to see the dark side of Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus and the North Pole!
3-SHOW TYA SERIES
February 26 – March 8, 2015
on the Second Stage
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
by Randy Wyatt
Directed by Darryl B. Hovis
Discover a Wonderland you never knew
Alice falls down a rabbit hole to a world in which she encounters strange creatures and even stranger poetry. You’ll spot lesser-dramatized characters, like the White Knight and the Pigeon, alongside all your favorites, including the Queen of Hearts and the Mad Hatter.
May 29 – June 7, 2015
on the Mainstage
ORANGE COUNTY PREMIERE!
FANCY NANCY – THE MUSICAL
Book & Lyrics by Susan DiLallo
Music by Sam Viverito
Based on the book Fancy Nancy by Jane O’Conner and illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser
Directed by Kelly Todd
Executive Producer: Robert Berman
A sophisticated evening for the fancy side in all of us
Fancy Nancy and her friends Bree, Rhonda, Wanda, and Lionel are going to be performing in their very first show, “Deep Sea Dances.” Nancy is positive, that’s fancy for 100 percent sure, that she and Bree will be picked to be mermaids. When another girl wins the coveted role of the mermaid, Nancy is stuck playing a dreary, dull tree. Can Nancy bring fancy flair to her role, even though it isn’t the one she wanted?
October 8-18, 2015
on the Second Stage
WORLD PREMIERE!
THE LEGEND(S) OF SLEEPY HOLLOW
by Jonathan Josephson
Directed by Darryl B. Hovis
Join us on a spooky adventure
This theatrical adaptation of the timeless tale of Ichabod Crane and the fair damsel Katrina Van Tassel awakens the imagination—and the dreaded specter of the Headless Horseman. Delightfully adventurous, this ideal Halloween story will entertain literature and theater lovers of all ages.
All tickets can be purchased by calling (714) 777-3033 or by visiting www.ChanceTheater.com.
To schedule press interviews, request photos, schedule press comps or for any additional information, please contact Casey Long at (714) 900-3284 or by e-mail at [email protected].
ABOUT CHANCE THEATER
Proud to be one of the leading ensemble-driven theatre companies in Southern California, CHANCE THEATER won three Ovation Awards last year, including Best Production of a Musical–Intimate Theater, for its West Coast premiere of Triassic Parq — The Musical. The Chance also received an LADCC Award last year for its reimagined revival of West Side Story. The Anaheim City Council recently named Chance Theater “the official resident theater company of Anaheim”. Twice named “Outstanding Arts Organization” by Arts Orange County, Chance Theater is also a recipient of the LADCC’s Polly Warfield Award for Excellence. Founded in 1999, Chance Theater is focused on its goal of being Orange County’s premiere mid-size contemporary theater by contributing to a more compassionate, connected, and creative community. As a constituent member of Theatre Communications Group, Network of Ensemble Theaters, and the LA Stage Alliance, Chance Theater continues to bring national attention to the Southern California and Orange County theater scenes.
